Identify the many Myths in the financial system, including the dream of “beating the market” through individual stock selection.
Identify the key factors to becoming better do-it-yourself investors AND identify those which are under your control, such as an optimum allocation of your investments across appropriate asset categories.
Accompany you each step of the way in the saving and investment process- see our User Guide.
Help self-investors to better control their costs, what Warren Buffett calls the financial system’s friction costs.
Help you better use your tax-exempt (RRSP) account.
Show you how to minimize your tax-related investment costs.
Give you access to information to help you better manage a portfolio intended to constitute an important source of retirement income.
Identify areas where the financial system does not adequately take into account the interests of independent investors.
Encourage reforms to the regulatory system.
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Financial literacy programs: more savings, not better investing?
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Financial education (called financial literacy programs) seems to be the flavor of the day everywhere. Our own site has a strong educational component: give information to help you manage your portfolio yourself (DIY investing). As a result our own general reaction can only be one of supporting such initiatives , which in
theory should lead to increased financial literacy, and subsequently to better financial decisions, and even enable some persons to become DIY investors. But is the enthusiasm of the financial industry for such programs disinterested? Does the industry really have any incentive to promote independent investing?
What is financial education?
The OECD Council in June 2005 defined financial education as follows:
Financial education is the process by which consumers / investors
improve their financial knowledge of financial products and concepts
acquire, through information, training or advice objective, skills and confidence needed to better understand the risks and opportunities to finance
make reasoned, informed choices
know where to find advice and information
take other initiatives to improve their financial well-being Source: translation of OECD document doc.1431, p.14
Note that, as defined, these objectives are not intended to achieve real financial independence, but seem more designed to encourage (know where to find advice and information) investors to rely on financial institutions. And if the assistance sought does not prove to be informed and objective, well it’s the investor’s problem.
The movement toward financial education
In recent years there has been a widespread movement to promote financial education; in Ontario, see Fair Canada for a useful overview, and also see the following on the website of Fair Canada.
In our view financial education is necessary, not only because education and access to information in general is an essential component of any modern society, but also because it is particularly necessary in the financial sector to help people to protect themselves because of disparities in information and in economic and bargaining power i.e. to protect the weak against the strong. In this, there is little difference between trying to protect consumers and doing the same for investors.
In our view, the challenge of education in the financial sector is not only to ensure the availability of information (on the contrary, in many cases there is often an excess of information), it is also to ensure that the content of information made available to beneficiaries of the programs reflects the inequalities between the parties in the financial sector.
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The information on self investing is divided into 44 sections (and counting) which are organized under eleven main headings or topics. Click on Themes at the top of this page for a short summary of the information covered under all of the topics.
For a list of the sections under any particular theme, click on the name of that theme at the top of this page.
Who should visit our site?
You are an independent investor looking for investment information focused on the needs of do-it-yourself investors.
You are a novice in investment matters, but are considering becoming more independent in your investing.
You trade in reliance on a financial advisor, but wish to better use his services, or perhaps understand the other alternative trading methods.
Perhaps you see self investing as a retirement project, or are merely curious about the world of investing.
Perhaps as a result of your professional activities (institutional investor, broker, professor or journalist), you seek access to a non-industry source of objective investment information.
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RRSP
Financial education (called financial literacy programs) seems to be the flavor of the day everywhere. Our own site has a strong educational component: give information to help you manage your portfolio yourself (DIY investing). As a result our own general reaction can only be one of supporting such initiatives , which in
theory should lead to increased financial literacy, and subsequently to better financial decisions, and even enable some persons to become DIY investors. But is the enthusiasm of the financial industry for such programs disinterested? Does the industry really have any incentive to promote independent investing? 
